Post-acute COVID-19 infection reported pulmonary, hematologic, cardiovascular, neuropsychiatric, renal, endocrine, gastrointestinal, and dermatologic effects.

• Introduce: State your name and role in the patient’s care, and sit and make eye contact.
• Collaborate: Encourage patients to continue.
• Acknowledge: The emotion, patient and situation.
• Reflectively listen: Let the patient speak and invite them to speak.
• Set Expectations: Communicate about the plan of care and uncertainty.

Patient-physician communication is teachable with simple, high-yield tactics found in the medical literature.

As COVID-19 evolved into a pandemic, stressors developed, not only on the medical system, but also on the clinical providers themselves. Limited resources, a novel pathogen, and significant risk of spread to providers are just some of the many pressures facing the healthcare community. During times of intense crises, uncertainty and loss of control can lead to significant stress for health care providers and contribute to burnout.

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic may represent a greater problem for health care providers as they face challenges imposed by the pandemic both in the workplace and at home. In a pandemic situation, one of the greatest tools of the health care provider is the ability to offer correct and timely information to the patient. This ability was tested during the early portions of the COVID-19 pandemic given the multiple venues of incorrect information easily available to the patient. Throughout the world, provider burn-out and the need to improve work-life balance are recognized as critical issues in modern medicine.

More than two years into the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, cardiovascular disease (CVD) has emerged as a risk factor and an outcome for both acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (direct and indirect effects) and its longer-term effects, known as long COVID, which can affect up to 54% of patients who recover from the acute infection3. Long COVID is becoming a major health burden in many countries. The risk of CVD after COVID-19 has been studied in specific settings and cohorts (such as in hospitalized individuals), as well as in patients with a history of CVD. However, until now, the full spectrum of post-acute cardiovascular manifestations of COVID-19 has not been characterized in patients with long COVID. Numerous cardiometabolic risk factors — such as obesity, smoking, hypertension and diabetes mellitus — are implicated in the interaction between COVID-19 and CVD.

COVID-19 can increase the risk of developing CVD after the acute infection, even in individuals who were at low risk of CVD before having COVID-19.

Long COVID will clearly lead to an enormous health care burden on top of the costs of acute COVID-19 medical support, which are already substantial. There is therefore an urgent need to improve the diagnosis and treatment of long COVID, especially in the cardiovascular domain.

People who got COVID-19 had a higher risk of dangerous blood clots for close to a year later, according to a large new study on the aftereffects of a SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Researchers and medical experts have reported that people affected by COVID-19 – particularly if they are hospitalized, require oxygen, a ventilator, or have severe pneumonia – have a higher risk for developing dangerous blood clots than people with less severe disease.

Also, there is evidence that COVID-19 patients discharged from the hospital without anticoagulation may experience clotting.  More research is needed to better understand the risk for blood clots in people with mild to moderate and asymptomatic COVID-19 disease and also to evaluate the use of anticoagulation therapy following hospitalization for COVID-19.

What are the risk factors for blood clots?

• Age greater than 60 years
• Personal or family history of VTE
• Medical conditions such as lung disease or infections, active cancer, heart failure
• Reduced mobility especially if confined to hospital bed
• Obesity
• Pregnancy
• Certain contraceptive pill or hormone replacement therapy

One major explanation for the increase is the unprecedented stress caused by the social isolation resulting from the pandemic. Linked to this were constraints on people’s ability to work, seek support from loved ones and engage in their communities.

Loneliness, fear of infection, suffering and death for oneself and for loved ones, grief after bereavement and financial worries have also all been cited as stressors leading to anxiety and depression. Among health workers, exhaustion has been a major trigger for suicidal thinking.

This increase in the prevalence of mental health problems has coincided with severe disruptions to mental health services, leaving huge gaps in care for those who need it most.

People with substance use disorders, notably those addicted to tobacco or opioids, had worse outcomes.

Mental health is known to affect the outcomes of some diseases.

Salt: without it, food can seem tasteless. It is the reason sea water burns our eyes and skin. Some people enjoy salt water baths. Is it good for us? Is it not? Do we really know?

Excessive sodium intake is also a risk factor for high blood pressure. Both excessive sodium intake and high blood pressure are major risk factors for developing heart failure, and for causing complications in those with existing heart failure. Given that 6.5 million American adults have heart failure, restricting salt intake might profoundly reduce risk for this major medical scourge.

Sodium intake is associated with fluid retention, hence the puffiness and bloating that may follow a very salty meal. And excessive sodium intake may worsen high blood pressure, or hypertension. High blood pressure increases the risk of developing heart failure and can worsen existing heart failure. Hypertension may also lead to other types of heart disease, stroke, or kidney failure. A low-sodium diet may help lower or prevent high blood pressure, and may reduce the risk of such diseases.

For more information Contact  Dr. Nagamani Pullepu